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| This CDF station is located south of
Hollister in the rugged, scenic area of the Pinnacles National
Monument. The California Department of Forestry staffs and maintains
this station as a jumping-off point for fire fighting and emergency
rescue services around the area. The station is comprised of a
Heli-Tack (fire-fighting helicopter) station, a large barracks
for the CDF fire fighters and staff, a kitchen area, mechanic's
shop, offices, and work areas. The station's numbers vary with
the season, with more than 40 CDF staffers on-site during the
peak fire-fighting season and lesser numbers in the winter and
early spring. |
| Bear
Valley Sign |
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| The station
was plagued with poor quality water for years. The water, from
a single well a mile and half from the station, also supplies
nearby cattle and is high in iron,
manganese, hydrogen sulfide
and salinity. Periodically, the water - so near a cattle pasture
area - tested positive for coliform bacteria.
A robust, fully-automatic system was needed to meet these demanding
requirements. Working closely with the State's engineers, Clean Water Systems designed and installed a custom treatment plant
to handle this troublesome water. The system, installed in early
1993, has been continually serviced and maintained by Clean Water Systems' technicians. |
| The main treatment plant is located
near the well. The well water
is chlorinated and then pumped into the raw water holding tank.
After settling and contact time has been achieved, the water is
pumped through an automatic, continuous-duty iron
filtration system, into a clean-water holding tank. From the
clean-water holding tank, the water is treated with a food-grade,
polyphosphate corrosion inhibitor.
From there it flows by gravity into a clear-well where a submersible
pump pumps the water over 1.5 miles and up a hill over 80 feet
in elevation to an underground concrete holding tank. |
| Helicopter |
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| At this point the water is
clean, disinfected and odor-free. The water is still very high
in hardness, minerals and total
dissolved solids. The water is re-pressurized with booster
pumps and delivered to the offices, kitchen and barracks through
a twin-tank, continuous-duty water softening
system. At the cafeteria, and the barracks, heavy-duty reverse-osmosis
systems purify the water of total dissolved solids (salinity)
and allow pure water for cooking, drinking and other uses. |
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